Hey, Nick.......

[James H. Bushart]

....I know that what ASHI can do, we can do better.

What can you do with this?

Dear ASHI Members,

ASHI is pleased to announce a new ASHI-Endorsed Program - The Senior Home Safety Network (SHSN). This program will give ASHI inspectors the opportunity to diversify into specialty "safety" inspections designed to allow senior citizens to continue to live safely in their own homes. As you may have personally experienced, senior citizens often prefer to stay in their home as long as they can before they consider moving into other living arrangements. The SHSN inspections will give these residents - and their children - considerable peace of mind that safety hazards have been detected and dealt with.

A HOME INSPECTION BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY● Small initial investment (fee for a 2-hour training session, classroom or webinar, plus purchase of the marketing package)
● New revenue streams, even when housing sales are down
● Use your own inspection tools
● Great work for older inspectors
● Build referral sources beyond the realtor community
● It is a continuity business - senior services do not end with a single inspection
● Scheduling is not as time sensitive as the real estate sales process
● IMS friendly scheduling
● Shared leads with a network of established Senior Home Safety Network providers across the country
● Help give peace of mind to adult children living across the country from their parents

ENHANCE YOUR BUSINESS IMAGE ABOVE THE COMPETITION
● Communicate to your clients you are more than just a "house sale inspector"
● Establish yourself as a caring professional helping seniors, our most fragile citizens
● Utilize the pre-written press releases to establish your company's expertise in the field
● Operate under established Standards of Practice for Senior Home Safety Inspections
● Web based and stored simplified reporting system

PUBLIC RELATIONS OPPORTUNITY
● Separate yourself as a Certified Senior Home Safety Inspector
● Website medallion link will help raise your website ranking
● Police Clearances establish you as a "safe choice" for all inspections
● Build website visibility through national website link exchange

While it would not be hard for anyone to do on their own, putting together such an item and marketing it, nationally, as an association also has a great benefit.

Whatta ya think?

[Nick Gromicko]

Sure, I'll have a course built for it. Demand on this is really soft I will warn.

[Scott Gilligan, CMI]

I have tried marketing this before and went to home health care providers to drop off information and give sales pitches in the past. I developed a HomeGauge template specifically for home safety inspection for the elderly and people with dimensia based on a checklist from a couple of doctors in NJ.

I haven't had much luch with it in the past, but I really don't try to get out there and sell the service too much. I was also working on a childproofing inspection template too for clients having a child or adopting one. I stopped mid-stream because I became too busy doing regular home inspections.

[Nick Gromicko]

That's basically the problem with them. No consumer wants to pay for it as a separate inspection and so there is no additional revenue added by offering it.

And those who purchase a full home inspection assume safety is included, and for the most part they are correct... it is essentially a subset of a full home inspection.

I'd love for someone to "show me the money" because I just don't see it.

[James H. Bushart]

I attended the two-hour course at a two day chapter meeting in September. There was nothing in it that isn't advertised on the brochure...but the instructor claimed that he (at $100 per safety inspection) is entering 2010 with 360 of them already on the books.

Presumably, this is sold as an annual inspection and each year builds upon the next.

Joe Farsetta told me I was crazy for considering offering anything to do with "safety" from a liability standpoint. I put it on the back burner for a while. I think that NACHI, with its marketing power, could sanitize it and make it something that would be safe to sell.

[Gary Farnsworth]

There are many web sites out there that specialize in child and elderly safety. I include pages of safety tips with every inspection. Perhaps Ben could write a book/pamplet.................

I have also tried to sell seperately; just too much free info out there on the web.

[John Onofrey]

Originally Posted by jbushart

...but the instructor claimed that he (at $100 per safety inspection) is entering 2010 with 360 of them already on the books.

Have to agree with Nick on this one....and also wonder who might be the one with dementia. The whole thing is a bad idea except for the instructor making money off of classes for this B.S.

The upside might be that you could get old people to write you $10,000 checks for a home inspection.

[William J. Decker]

I have been doing this for years, and promoting NACHI in the process.

Free home safety check-ups. Usually in the fall (about this time, when the holidays slow home sales). Check the furnace, water heater, etc, for venting promlems and gas leaks and a general safety inspection (reversed polarity, etc) and water intrusion.

I have a whole booklet that I give them.

And, I have gotten a locak radio and TV station to run free public service ads for it.

Did two, in my area. One for a local candy manufactrer and one for the Executive Director of the locak chamber of commerce (for his church) and in both found massive CO emissions from older furnaces (which the replaced).

But the PR was great.

The candy guy has been sending, free, 100 lb boxes of chocolate to my daughter (at the U.S. Naval Academy, every hear on her birthday, which she shares with her whole company. He told me, just the other day, that the number of orders from Academy parents (from all over the country) has greatly increased. His web site is here: http://www.illinoisnut.com/.

Give him a call. The Peanut Butter Barks and Chocolaty covered Cherries are great (and your wives will LOVE them).

The COC director was so impressed that he has afforded me with 3 chamber sponsored education (power point of NACHI information) seminars.

Great marketing.

Beats sitting home and playing with this web site

Hope this helps;

[John Onofrey]

Originally Posted by wdecker

I have been doing this for years, and promoting NACHI in the process.

Free home safety check-ups. Usually in the fall (about this time, when the holidays slow home sales). Check the furnace, water heater, etc, for venting promlems and gas leaks and a general safety inspection (reversed polarity, etc) and water intrusion.

I have a whole booklet that I give them.

And, I have gotten a locak radio and TV station to run free public service ads for it.

Did two, in my area. One for a local candy manufactrer and one for the Executive Director of the locak chamber of commerce (for his church) and in both found massive CO emissions from older furnaces (which the replaced).

But the PR was great.

The candy guy has been sending, free, 100 lb boxes of chocolate to my daughter (at the U.S. Naval Academy, every hear on her birthday, which she shares with her whole company. He told me, just the other day, that the number of orders from Academy parents (from all over the country) has greatly increased. His web site is here: http://www.illinoisnut.com/.

Give him a call. The Peanut Butter Barks and Chocolaty covered Cherries are great (and your wives will LOVE them).

The COC director was so impressed that he has afforded me with 3 chamber sponsored education (power point of NACHI information) seminars.

Great marketing.

Beats sitting home and playing with this web site

Hope this helps;

I guess that proves Nick point if you have free public service ads and you can't even give this type of inspection away. Nice of you to do though.

[William J. Decker]

Originally Posted by jonofrey

I guess that proves Nick point if you have free public service ads and you can't even give this type of inspection away. Nice of you to do though.

These inspections have been very helpful to my business. Good will from the public has helped our NACHI CHapter to gain visability.

Doing these inspections for some elderly people has helped me because they tell their sons and daugthers to hire me when they buy houses.

It has made me very visable to our local chamber of commerce, and to other nearby chambers (our chamber holds multi chamber events.) These have forged relationships with contractors (HVAC, electrical, insulation,m etc) who I get to know and refer to my clients. They also refer clients to me. One insulatyion company, regularly, advises the client to have an energy audit done before they install new insulation to an older home.

Hope this helps;